CHARLESTON, W.Va. — For the first time, vaping devices — minus any lithium batteries — and vaping cartridges will be accepted during the Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.
The 18th event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 26, 2019 at locations in West Virginia and across the U.S.
Dropoffs are free and can made anonymously.
“There’s no questions asked,” said Kevin McWilliams, public information officer for the DEA’s Louisville Division which includes West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.
“You can say ‘hello’ to us and engage us in conversation if you’d like, but a lot of people just roll by and hand us a bag of stuff and go on their way.”
In the past, such items have included expired, unused and unwanted prescription or over-the-counter medications.
This year’s addition of vaping devices and cartridges to the collection list for Drug Take Back Day comes at a time when illnesses and deaths in the U.S. linked to vaping are on the rise.
In a statement, Uttam Dhillon, acting DEA administrator, said the vaping collections were designed to combat an “emerging public health threat to the nation’s youth.”
Since first launching in 2010, more than 11 million pounds, or almost 6,000 tons, of medications have been collected at Take Back events.
Last April alone, upwards of 469 tons of prescription drugs were dropped off at more than 6,258 DEA sites nationwide and through 4,969 local partners.
“For us, it’s never enough,” said McWilliams. “It’s a service that we feel is valuable and we appreciate all of our partners helping us to collect this stuff across the country.”
The list of locations registered as dropoff sites for Saturday is available HERE or by calling 800-882-9539.